UW Collaborates on First-Ever Geolocation-Triggered Digital Payment Using Tokenized Bank Deposits
Steve Lupien, UW’s Center for Blockchain and Digital Innovation Ada Lovelace director,
at the Wyoming State Capitol in Cheyenne following the successful test of the first-ever
geolocation-triggered digital payment using tokenized bank deposits. (UW Photo)
A pioneering demonstration of geolocation-triggered payments using stablecoin technology
recently was conducted by the University of Wyoming, Texas Christian University (TCU),
Custodia and Vantage Bank.
“The effort marks a milestone in the real-world application of programmable money
and blockchain-powered financial technology,” says Steve Lupien, the Ada Lovelace
director of the UW Center for Blockchain and Digital Innovation (CBDI).
As part of the pilot demonstration, Lupien and TCU Professor Kelly Slaughter, of its
Neeley School of Business, successfully executed a peer-to-peer digital payment using
Avits™, a tokenized form of a U.S. dollar developed by Custodia.
The transaction triggered when the Lupien and Slaughter arrived at a location during
drives from their respective campuses to state capitals — Laramie to Cheyenne by
Lupien and Fort Worth to Austin by Slaughter — symbolizing the leadership of Wyoming
and Texas in blockchain policy.
“This collaboration with Custodia and Vantage Bank is a powerful example of how academic
institutions can play a leading role in validating emerging financial technologies,”
Lupien says.
The payment leveraged Custodia’s patented technology for tokenized U.S. dollars (U.S.
Patent No. 11392906), which enables programmable automation of bank payments. The
transactions highlight potential applications across sectors including logistics,
construction and digital commerce.
Custodia and Vantage Bank officials say they continue to support blockchain education
initiatives in Wyoming and Texas, aligning with UW’s mission to lead in blockchain
innovation and public-private collaboration.
Jeff Sinnott, president and CEO of Vantage Bank, says the geolocation-triggered payment
functionality that leverages programmable money to automatically enforce payment conditions
was developed in response to customer demand.
“With tokenized deposits, customers can enforce payment rules and conditions automatically,
ensuring transactions are executed as intended,” Sinnott says. “Multiple customers
in the logistics and construction industries wanted these services, and we plan to
make them broadly available.”
“Custodia and Vantage are bringing stablecoin technology to traditional banking business
and doing it better, faster, cheaper,” says Caitlin Long, CEO of Custodia. “Vantage
and Custodia are delivering purpose-built services for banks — the originators of
most payments — which are a green-field market for stablecoin technology. We have
built our services for banks using an API first ‘headless core’ coupled with pre-built,
white-labeled apps so any bank can leverage these capabilities with minimal friction.”
Lupien says helping businesses implement innovative technology is among the CBDI mission
goals.
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